Who is winning the race to get more traffic?
This 14-year-old kid, Fred. He’s gotten MILLIONS of views! 45 million at last count.
This is what happens when you try to simply be entertaining.
If traffic is your goal, here’s the formula. Do something really stupid that’ll make people laugh.
Me? I’ll stick with having a few thousand people passionate about learning more from innovative technologists and other leaders.
Why not get into the traffic race? Because I’d rather be in the race for a smart, focused audience. That’s where the real action is.
It also says volumes about why YouTube is losing millions of dollars every month. They can’t monetize this kid, and THAT should tell you how much real value there is in having a big audience.
Back to business: anytime I get a company who asks me about my traffic I’ll show them this blog post first and ask the question about why they haven’t sponsored this kid’s show already, since he has already won the traffic game.
Nice post Scoble. I’m extra encouraged to post a comment today because I just finished reading your book Naked Conversations.
Online video will need a way to monetize viral videos that spread very fast usually without knowing the viral effect will occur. TV has it easy (or at least it used to), show the content to the advertisers, get sponsorship deals lined up in the spring and summer, air the shows in the fall, and everybody wins (except most of the advertisers of course because TV advertising isn’t effective, measurable, provides a poor ROI, etc.).
New systems will need to be put in place, I do see big potential in creative overlay ads at the bottom of the video screen, but scaling advertising inventory to match content inventory is something that needs to be more closely looked at. Especially with the Web getting more connected, social, interactive, collaborative, and community driven by passionate individuals.
I’m personally obsessed with online video, and love working with new media models in the emerging Web 2.0 jungle.
Nice post Scoble. I’m extra encouraged to post a comment today because I just finished reading your book Naked Conversations.
Online video will need a way to monetize viral videos that spread very fast usually without knowing the viral effect will occur. TV has it easy (or at least it used to), show the content to the advertisers, get sponsorship deals lined up in the spring and summer, air the shows in the fall, and everybody wins (except most of the advertisers of course because TV advertising isn’t effective, measurable, provides a poor ROI, etc.).
New systems will need to be put in place, I do see big potential in creative overlay ads at the bottom of the video screen, but scaling advertising inventory to match content inventory is something that needs to be more closely looked at. Especially with the Web getting more connected, social, interactive, collaborative, and community driven by passionate individuals.
I’m personally obsessed with online video, and love working with new media models in the emerging Web 2.0 jungle.
Actually, for a 14 year-old, “Fred” has made some pretty decent money.
We interviewed him over at NewTeeVee:
http://newteevee.com/2008/06/25/fred-speaks-to-ntv-squeaky-voice-not-included/
Rather than waiting for YouTube to monetize his work, Fred got a manager and they monetized it on their own.
Fred got a five figure deal with Zipit to do three “viral” vids. There were performance benchmarks bonuses built into the deal for 1 million, 1.5 million, etc. plays. He beat all of those benchmarks in a week.
Fred’s launching his own URL this month where he’ll offer merchandise and further monetize the character. Plus, he’s had meetings with execs at Fox and Disney.
He’s not simply entertaining, the kid’s got a plan, and it’s working out pretty well.
Actually, for a 14 year-old, “Fred” has made some pretty decent money.
We interviewed him over at NewTeeVee:
http://newteevee.com/2008/06/25/fred-speaks-to-ntv-squeaky-voice-not-included/
Rather than waiting for YouTube to monetize his work, Fred got a manager and they monetized it on their own.
Fred got a five figure deal with Zipit to do three “viral” vids. There were performance benchmarks bonuses built into the deal for 1 million, 1.5 million, etc. plays. He beat all of those benchmarks in a week.
Fred’s launching his own URL this month where he’ll offer merchandise and further monetize the character. Plus, he’s had meetings with execs at Fox and Disney.
He’s not simply entertaining, the kid’s got a plan, and it’s working out pretty well.
It’s not always the stupid gimmick stunts, as Limbaugh’s $38 million a year, until the sun goes supernova, attests.
It’s not always the stupid gimmick stunts, as Limbaugh’s $38 million a year, until the sun goes supernova, attests.
[...] guy is amazing. He is only 14 years old, yet he has more than 40m video views in total. His YouTube channel has been viewd almost 6m times and he has more than a quarter of a [...]
Huh, and to think I’ve been wasting all this time with site promotion and social networking when all I had to do was act like a complete moron.
Huh, and to think I’ve been wasting all this time with site promotion and social networking when all I had to do was act like a complete moron.
[...] certainly something easily measured. While these measurements have some value I agree with Scoble and Seth, it’s the who and more importantly, the what, that really [...]
[...] Scoble has a great post about a 14 year old kid with 45 million viewers on YouTube. [...]
[...] Seth Godin and Robert Scoble talk about a video by Fred. When you look at all the views of his videos he has over 45 million [...]
Novelty plays a big part in the popularity of stuff like this. The novelty is, anyone old enough to buy a computer has spent most of his/her life in a world where broadcast video was made by capital-P Professionals. If we expect professionalism, and we get some kid being a dork, the thing that makes us laugh isn’t the dorkiness–it’s the fact that it’s being broadcast!
Thanks to YouTube, amateur-grade video is changing from a novelty to a norm. Once we get used to broadcast dorkiness, it won’t make us laugh anymore. After that, anyone who wants a big audience–or a small audience from a desirable demographic–will actually have to make a good video.
Novelty plays a big part in the popularity of stuff like this. The novelty is, anyone old enough to buy a computer has spent most of his/her life in a world where broadcast video was made by capital-P Professionals. If we expect professionalism, and we get some kid being a dork, the thing that makes us laugh isn’t the dorkiness–it’s the fact that it’s being broadcast!
Thanks to YouTube, amateur-grade video is changing from a novelty to a norm. Once we get used to broadcast dorkiness, it won’t make us laugh anymore. After that, anyone who wants a big audience–or a small audience from a desirable demographic–will actually have to make a good video.
fred´s video made me really really sad
is that supposed to be funny?
i don´t see the point, i must be too old, or to snotty, or whatever
keep on eating sh*t!
…………. 45 million flies can´t all be wrong!!
let´s keep on monetizing the “bread and circus”dudes!
cheers
fred´s video made me really really sad
is that supposed to be funny?
i don´t see the point, i must be too old, or to snotty, or whatever
keep on eating sh*t!
…………. 45 million flies can´t all be wrong!!
let´s keep on monetizing the “bread and circus”dudes!
cheers
[...] Dedicated to the most recent (and extremely annoying), wonder boy, Fred. [...]
I do MLM and found the hard way, that traffic alone is no measure of quality leads.
For that matter buying leads is even worse!
Get your own leads for free.
Great business building information is available and for FREE!
I use it and have great success, the best part is I enjoy sharing with others
and seeing them succeed is very up lifing.
It cost nothing to give back and share!
There are many people looking for a real team to work with and learn.
LynnRothfuss
lynnrothfuss@gmail.com
lynnrothfuss.successin10steps.com
http://www.youtube.com/lynnrothfuss
I do MLM and found the hard way, that traffic alone is no measure of quality leads.
For that matter buying leads is even worse!
Get your own leads for free.
Great business building information is available and for FREE!
I use it and have great success, the best part is I enjoy sharing with others
and seeing them succeed is very up lifing.
It cost nothing to give back and share!
There are many people looking for a real team to work with and learn.
LynnRothfuss
lynnrothfuss@gmail.com
lynnrothfuss.successin10steps.com
http://www.youtube.com/lynnrothfuss
[...] 4, 2008 Scobleizer recently blogged about Fred, a 14-year old kid who’s gotten over 40 million views on youtube for his [...]
[...] pm on Julho 4, 2008 | # | Etiquetas HTML:copiando Scoble has a great post about a 14 year old kid with 45 million viewers on [...]
Fred…
)
Strange, but the first thing that comes to my mind is/was the musicgroup Milli Vanilli.
I think the same pretending-strategy created by clever marketingpeople without a real soul (:o)) that gave birth to Milli Vanilli (and maybe half of the worlds popular singers) is getting bigger everyday on the Internet.
Just like Fred!
Fred…
)
Strange, but the first thing that comes to my mind is/was the musicgroup Milli Vanilli.
I think the same pretending-strategy created by clever marketingpeople without a real soul (:o)) that gave birth to Milli Vanilli (and maybe half of the worlds popular singers) is getting bigger everyday on the Internet.
Just like Fred!
[...] Scobble is always the first to run after any new web hype; but not this time; instead of trying to understand what makes that kid so successful he plays it down: “This is [...]
As mentioned above Fred is a partner with youtube as most of the top 100 most subscribed are. Youtube thus makes money of them buy showing CPM or PPC adsense ads. Now who knows if these pay the hosting bill but it’s an attempt.
It seems that this is the future as they see it or at least part of the puzzle. I don’t know if it will pay the whole bill but as they move their non DMCA offending video posters to promoted status they have more ability to make money if it works out who knows.
But if you are smart you have the ability to drive alot of traffic from youtube. and if can be ultra targeted. In that lies the great youtube secret.
As mentioned above Fred is a partner with youtube as most of the top 100 most subscribed are. Youtube thus makes money of them buy showing CPM or PPC adsense ads. Now who knows if these pay the hosting bill but it’s an attempt.
It seems that this is the future as they see it or at least part of the puzzle. I don’t know if it will pay the whole bill but as they move their non DMCA offending video posters to promoted status they have more ability to make money if it works out who knows.
But if you are smart you have the ability to drive alot of traffic from youtube. and if can be ultra targeted. In that lies the great youtube secret.
[...] nicht so mit dem Fred-Phänomen; statt dass er versucht, dem Phänomen Fred auf die Spur zu kommen, spielt er es herunter: “Dahin kommt man, wenn man einfach nur versucht, unterhaltsam zu sein. Falls Sie es sich zum [...]
“The type of people that are commenting on Fred’s youtube videos.”?
They’re called teenagers. And yes, you’re old now.
“The type of people that are commenting on Fred’s youtube videos.”?
They’re called teenagers. And yes, you’re old now.
And what happens in 5 years time when Fred realises he is not going to be the next Jim Carey and turns up at Goldmans/PWC/etc looking for a “normal” job. Does this help or hinder his employment prospects!?
And what happens in 5 years time when Fred realises he is not going to be the next Jim Carey and turns up at Goldmans/PWC/etc looking for a “normal” job. Does this help or hinder his employment prospects!?
[...] it does – He has already grown into a really BIG mini star. But is YouTube is smart enough to cash in on Fred? And it is not that Fred has done great for a single video – he is doing great in all the videos [...]
I watched this guy’s videos last week. I sat through two of them and my GF was asking me to mute that ridiculous noise. I don’t understand it. The top YouTube channels are all a bunch of kids doing dumbass stupid videos.
So that’s my rant
I watched this guy’s videos last week. I sat through two of them and my GF was asking me to mute that ridiculous noise. I don’t understand it. The top YouTube channels are all a bunch of kids doing dumbass stupid videos.
So that’s my rant
[...] Is getting “more traffic” your real goal? : I would agree with my favourite blogger rober scoble. You gotta read the rest [...]
What you want is to Attract Targeted traffic. Social Networking (Web 2.0) is a great way to do this. YouTube is just one of many social sites, such as Facebook, Digg, etc.
What you want is to Attract Targeted traffic. Social Networking (Web 2.0) is a great way to do this. YouTube is just one of many social sites, such as Facebook, Digg, etc.
[...] for how to do things properly next time around. And today, in Who vs. how many, he picks up on Robert Scoble’s post against the rush to audience and provides us with this “quote of the day” [...]
[...] Scobleizer ? Tech geek blogger » Blog Archive Is getting ?more traffic? your real goal? «… – [...]
Bingo! Traffic was a numbers game back in 2000, although smart marketers always knew that website traffic is about getting people to your site who love what you are talking about and VISIT OFTEN.
“Wham-Bam-Thank-you-Ma’am ain’t so great online either. Give me thousands of people who subsscribe or opt-in b/c they care over millions of one-hit wonders anyday.
Just my .02
Karen Miner Hurd
http://www.MLMmaniac.com
Bingo! Traffic was a numbers game back in 2000, although smart marketers always knew that website traffic is about getting people to your site who love what you are talking about and VISIT OFTEN.
“Wham-Bam-Thank-you-Ma’am ain’t so great online either. Give me thousands of people who subsscribe or opt-in b/c they care over millions of one-hit wonders anyday.
Just my .02
Karen Miner Hurd
http://www.MLMmaniac.com
Think of traffic as a room fall of blank faces, all waiting for a moment of genius to come forward. If you don’t offer it, they will reject you and after awhile they will find another to stare and wait.
Today you figured out something that most have known but rarely talk about. Fame is a shallow guage for acceptance amongst peers whom are preoccupied with their own fame to notice.
Right now, I’ll be honest, I find you 70% noisey and 30% signal. The 30% signal are usually the random videos that you go into off the cuff, without some agenda.. That’s what will keep me staring at your videos for 20mins+, i don’t mind spending 180mins with Scoble TV provided that there is something worth viewing.
I’m a viewer, but you make it tough at times to view. Then you have moments and all is forgiven? 14yr kid has 45million views, how many are repeat visitors.. and why..is more the curious metric there..
Don’t be a news anchor, be a industry street reporter
-
Scott Barnes
Rich Client Platform Manager
Microsoft.
Think of traffic as a room fall of blank faces, all waiting for a moment of genius to come forward. If you don’t offer it, they will reject you and after awhile they will find another to stare and wait.
Today you figured out something that most have known but rarely talk about. Fame is a shallow guage for acceptance amongst peers whom are preoccupied with their own fame to notice.
Right now, I’ll be honest, I find you 70% noisey and 30% signal. The 30% signal are usually the random videos that you go into off the cuff, without some agenda.. That’s what will keep me staring at your videos for 20mins+, i don’t mind spending 180mins with Scoble TV provided that there is something worth viewing.
I’m a viewer, but you make it tough at times to view. Then you have moments and all is forgiven? 14yr kid has 45million views, how many are repeat visitors.. and why..is more the curious metric there..
Don’t be a news anchor, be a industry street reporter
-
Scott Barnes
Rich Client Platform Manager
Microsoft.
[...] in the blogosphere, had a brief exchange that got me thinking. (You can read Scoble’s post here and Seth’s post here.) In short, both agreed that the number of exposures (hits, traffic) is [...]
[...] Seth Godin pointed me to Scobleizer’s post entitled: “Is getting ‘more traffic’ your real goal?” [...]
[...] calculated that the Fred videos have been watched a total of 48 million times. Robert Scoble may call it stupid, but I think that is selling short the very clever and deliberate ascent to stardom of this [...]
[...] Godin and Robert Scoble both wrote about this recently… The value of having a niche [...]
Let me play devil’s advocate – there have been highly successful mass market campaigns that have done a good job at marketing mass appeal products and services.
If you have a niche product then of course you are better aligning it to your niche audience – your cost of doing business will be much lower and response rate much higher.
If you have a mass appeal consumer good or service, then using mass market publicity like these videos is certainly worth the try – and given how much it is costing – likely very profitable.
Jeff
Let me play devil’s advocate – there have been highly successful mass market campaigns that have done a good job at marketing mass appeal products and services.
If you have a niche product then of course you are better aligning it to your niche audience – your cost of doing business will be much lower and response rate much higher.
If you have a mass appeal consumer good or service, then using mass market publicity like these videos is certainly worth the try – and given how much it is costing – likely very profitable.
Jeff
[...] Seth Godin and Robert Scoble speech most a recording by Fred. When you countenance at every the views of his videos he has over [...]